Because of You
by GhostlyGangBang
Summary: Because of you I find myself not so alone anymore. Because of you I've been able to realize that maybe it's not always my fault. Because of you I've finally discovered what it means to be cared about. Because of you I finally have a friend. Because of you I finally have the chance to be happy. Because of you I can finally fall in love. A Butters X Kenny story! Read at your own risk
1. Chapter 1

**_Disclaimer: I do not (sadly!) own any of the characters in this story. Enjoy!_**

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For as long as I can remember I've been alone in this world. Sure I guess that my parents are still living but they've been dead to me since I was little. They always say that they "love me" and that what they're doing is "for the best" but I know that they're lying. They say that it's my fault, that I'm not good enough, that I disappoint them, but they say that no matter what I do. I could get a 100% on a test in one of my AP classes but all they'd do is ground me for not getting a 105. It's always been like that though for as long as I can remember, I was grounded nearly constantly when I was younger. They've gotten better lately though, they've been so busy fighting among themselves that they all but forgot about me. It's OK I like it that way though because it means that I don't have to walk on eggshells all the time around them, but even though I don't need to much anymore I still try to make them proud of me.

When I was younger I was always happy, always smiling and laughing in an effort to make friends but it never worked. I gave up on that a few years ago when I realized that it was just irritating people even further. Now the only time anyone speaks to me is when Cartman is doing his usual bullying. As we've gotten older he's gotten a lot worse if that's even possible, when we were little he was just cruel with his words, calling people "Jew" and "faggot" but when we reached the high school level he grew violent. Now everyday I walk as quietly as I can around the school trying not to arouse his attention in fear of another one of his infamous beatings. He's gotten pretty rough with me before, I remember one time he even dislocated my arm because he twisted it too far in the wrong direction. I honestly don't know what makes me such an easy target for everybody but hamburgers I wish that it'd stop. I'm a junior in the South Park High School and I can honestly say that I Leopold "Butters" Stotch have never in my life had an actual friend.

Sighing to myself quietly I turn my attention back to the work sitting in front of me. Of course it's not the work for the class that I'm waiting to begin, that work was already finished and sitting in a neat pile on the corner of my desk waiting to be collected, what I'm working on currently is the homework that I was assigned in the period before this. Hey better to get it done early right? Besides it's not like I have anything else to do while I wait for this class to start so I may as well work on it now, it's the last class anyways so it's less for me to do when I get home. Ya know it's funny, it's almost as if I can feel somebody looking at me but I know that that couldn't possibly be true, nobody would ever see me sitting here, they never do. Lost in my misery I jumped in surprise and made a strangled sort of squeaking noise as I felt a hand fall silently on my shoulder. I closed my eyes tightly too afraid to turn around in fear of another beating by Eric Cartman. I was sure that I was completely done for when I felt the hand lift off of my shoulder, when I heard a very unexpected voice coming from behind my desk.

"Hey do you have the homework that's due today? Ms. Capen will kick my ass if she finds out I don't have it for the fifth day in a row."

I spin around quickly with what I'm sure is pure shock on my face to see a very sheepish Kenny McCormick standing behind me glaring at the floor.

"O-Oh sure do! H-here ya go! But please can you g-give it back before she collects our homework?" As I hold my completed homework out to him I see him look up at me and grab my homework with a thin lipped smile and a roll of his eyes. "B-But only if it's not too much trouble of course!" I finish hurriedly in an effort to rectify any irritation that he may be feeling towards me.

"I'm just gonna copy it down real fast and then you'll have it back on your desk. Whatcha think I wanna keep it or something?" he asked me sarcastically, his expression seeming to soften a bit when he saw the sheer terror painted on my face. "Hey listen thanks for letting me borrow this you're a lifesaver" he says as he turns around and walks back to his seat.

After he sits back down I can't help but sneak a few shy glances at him as he works. Kenny is South Park's resident "whore" as they like to call him and to be fair he is, I've heard he'll have sex with anybody and everybody for no reason other than that he feels like it. He's also been known by the locals as the largest troublemaker in town, if somebody tries to start anything with him he won't hesitate to put them in the ground. I heard that just a couple of months ago he sent somebody to the hospital because they tried to make fun of him for being "trailer trash". That's probably why the other guys stopped hanging around with him so much, they probably didn't want to be considered "troubled" because of association. I see him all the time smoking behind the school but I've always been too afraid to go up to him in case he's not having a good day and is looking for a fight. Even Cartman won't go anywhere near him and he'll make fun of anything that moves, he must've learned his lesson that day that Kenny hit him hard enough to fracture his jaw. I didn't even realize that he had moved from his desk until I felt a pile of papers hit my desk, forcibly jolting me from my thoughts. Looking up at him I could see an amused look on his face as I cowered away from him. Relaxing slightly I began to put the pages back in order again whispering a quiet thank you as I looked away from him shyly.

"Check the back of the paper" he says to me as he turns to go back to his desk, the chair scraping back from its position just as the bell rang signaling the beginning of the period. Every instinct that I had was telling me not to turn over my work but curiosity got the best of me and I just had to look. Turning over my homework I was surprised to find a message staring back at me: "Thanks for that. If ya ever need anything dude just ask. I owe ya one," followed by what looked like a phone number. Blushing furiously and shaking slightly I turned my paper back over as the teacher entered the room ready to begin the lesson.

As soon as class ends I make sure to very carefully copy down the night's homework before packing up my backpack. Whenever the bell rings signalling that classes are over I always like to move as slowly as I possibly can, as that means that it's even less time to spend getting harassed by Cartman. Taking a deep breath in I finally stand up from my seat and make my way out to the front of school in order to begin my walk home. By the time I made it out the school doors most of the other students had already left, the parking lot mostly empty excluding the cars that belong to the faculty and people on the sport's teams. I can see Kenny on the distant side of the parking lot leaning up against a tree with a cigarette between his fingers. Unfortunately for me I got so distracted by the sight of the other boy that I didn't notice the presence of Eric Cartman until it was too late.

Out of nowhere I could feel a searing pain in my side as I am knocked to the ground winded. Struggling for air I look up just in time to feel his fist connect with my jaw, forcing me back down again. Coughing and wheezing in an effort to breath I close my eyes tightly as I weakly put my arms up over my head trying to protect myself from the onslaught of punches and kicks that I know are going to come next. I could hear the sound of the rushing air followed by the sickening crunching of bone, and waited for the pain to come, but it never did. Cracking one eye slightly I could see Kenny McCormick standing over me, Eric Cartman holding his nose in his hands as he swore, blood dripping from between his fingers. Kenny looked angry- very angry. I could feel the anger radiating off of him as he stood over us both, his fists clenched and his jaw locked, a look of pure hatred covering his features. Through the ringing in my ears I couldn't hear what was being said but whatever it was seemed to upset Cartman even more as he began yelling something before he stalked away. With Cartman now gone Kenny turned to me. Feeling a surge of terror rush through my body I did my best to back up as far as I possibly could, but I didn't make it very far before I had to stop. Clutching at my side in pain and gasping for air I whimpered like a cornered animal as he made him way towards me. With the remainder of the strength that I had left I covered my head with my arms as I felt the world fade away to black.


	2. Chapter 2

When I woke up I had no idea where I was. As a sense of dread washed over me I sat up straight on the mattress and opened my eyes. I whimpered slightly as I looked around me- I had no idea where I was. The walls in this room were covered in posters so faded I couldn't even tell what they were anymore, the wallpaper behind them peeling to the point where it was almost comedic. And the carpet, or at least I think it's a carpet, had so many cigarette burns and stains then it looked as if it should have been replaced years ago. Yup it's official- I have completely no idea where I am, I need to get out of here. Throwing my legs over the side of the bed I put all my weight on them in order to stand up, immediately clutching at my side in pain as a scream of pain forced itself from my throat. When I tried to take a step towards the door frame I immediately dropped down on my knees, it hurt far too much to be able to walk. Realizing that I was virtually stuck here I looked around me in a panic trying to find anything that would help me, I saw that somebody had brought my backpack with them, it was leaning against the wall near the doorway. I have no idea how, but somehow I just need to be able to reach it.

"Are you OK mister?" I hear behind me.

Whirling around quickly I can now see a little girl, well little might be the wrong word seeing as how she looked to be about 11 or 12, but she was still small. She was standing there with a confused look on her face as she watched me.

"What are you doing?" She continued to ask as I just stared at her.

I tried to answer her but all of the words just seemed to get stuck in my throat. I think she could tell something was wrong though as she continued to walk closer to me. After what seemed like forever I finally managed to speak.

"W-Where am I? What happened? W-Who are you?" I threw questions at her as fast as I could possibly speak, my mind going a mile a minute as I tried to process what was going on, I never even managed to catch the fact that I was yelling.

The little girl in front of me stopped and made a soft sound, so soft that I almost didn't hear it, but it sounded like a soft whimper had just escaped her. Hamburgers I must've scared her, I can't imagine I look the best right now either, which probably doesn't help. Taking the opportunity I studied the girl as she stood there, her long blonde hair was so greasy and full of knots that it looked as if it hadn't been properly cared for in years. She couldn't have been more than a couple of steps away from being considered a skeleton, the clothes she was wearing as ripped up and dirty as they may be, were far too big for her small frame.

"Aw hamburgers I'm sorry, I-I didn't mean to startle you." I spoke quieter now, doing my best to sooth the little girl. "My name is Butters, What's yours?"

"I'm Karen" she answered in a shyer voice now, looking down at the floor.

"Well it's mighty fine to meet you Karen. Now you wouldn't happen to know how I got here would you?" I said, being far more gentle with my approach than I was earlier.

"Sure do! My big brother brought you here with him. He said that you weren't feeling good and asked me to watch you cuz he had to go somewhere but that he'd be back." she answered brightly, her eyes lighting up slightly as she spoke about him. "Hey mister do you need help?" She asked quizzically having noticed that I had still not moved from my spot on the floor.

"If you want to help me that'd me very helpful. Can you get my backpack please? I-It's by the doorway." I asked her.

As she ran to get my backpack I could tell that she had a slight problem with picking it up. After a few seconds I think she gave up on trying and she just dragged it across the floor instead, grunting slightly with the effort. It was cute really, the bag though it was shorter than her, must've weighed at least twice as much as she did. I tried my best to hold in my laughter but failed as a little giggle escaped.

"What do you have in here mister? It's so heavy!" she exclaimed as she dropped it in front of me, pushing her greasy hair out of her face in slight annoyance as she did so.

"Why i-it's just homework of course. Figured if I'm stuck here waiting anyways I might as well start to work on it. Besides I can use the bag to sit against, which'll probably hurt a lot less." I smiled as I leaned against it, sighing in relief. "Gosh don't you have any homework Karen? I could almost fall over with how much homework I got when I was little!"

"I brought some of it I guess...well a little bit at least. I gave up on that in second grade though. My daddy says I won't be able to go anywhere anyways cuz I'm too poor and stupid to. I tried to tell him that when I'm bigger I'm gunna get married and have a big house but he just laughs and tells me that no guy is ever gonna wanna marry me cuz I'm not pretty." she says as she looks down at the floor, as I could hear a small sob start to escape from her.

"W-Well now I don't quite know if I agree with that! You seem to be mighty smart to me! And whoever said anything about not being pretty? Do you have a hairbrush and any elastics? Hamburgers I'll help you show him just how pretty you can be!" I finished, a sadness in my heart as I saw the hopeful look on her face.

"I don't have anything like that mister I'm sorry." she said, she sounded disappointed.

"That's alright, I have a comb that we can use in a bag, my hair hates the rain you see. I don't have anything like an elastic b-but I have a couple of rubber bands that should be fine. H-Here come sit down and I'll show you how pretty you are." I said digging through my backpack before patting the spot on the ground right in front of me.

She looked so excited as she ran and plopped herself down in front of me that I just had to laugh a little bit. As I began to pull the comb through her hair I couldn't help but cringe slightly as my hand brushed accidently against it, feeling the grease transfer over to my skin. I spent the next few minutes getting all of the knots out of her hair as she began talking animatedly about her big brother (who I still don't know mind you). She was so enthralled in her story that she didn't even notice that I had finished what I was doing with her hair. It wasn't too much, it was basically just some little braids that I had wrapped around a bun that I had placed in her hair. It didn't take me too long to do but hamburgers did she look happy when I pointed out that I had finished. She had little tears of happiness in the corners of her eyes as she looked at herself in the shattered remains of the mirror on the wall.

"See Karen I told you that you're beautiful. I'm sure that once your dad sees you looking like that it'll change his mind too! Oh hamburgers any guy would be lucky to have you." I say proudly.

"Thank you mister Butters! I-It's so beautiful!" she said, tears pricking her eyes as she smiled widely.

"So I see you woke up then" somebody says from behind me.

Turning around in surprise I see Kenny McCormick leaning against the door frame, an amused smile on his face. Before I could say anything at all the little girl in front of me sprang up from her spot on the floor and wrapped her arms around the smirking boy in the doorway.

"Kenny! Kenny! Look what mister Butters did to my hair isn't it pretty? He told me that any guy would be lucky to marry me because I'm so pretty!" she started babbling excitedly as she showed him her hair, the largest smile ever on her face.

"That's great Karen you look beautiful. Why don't you go start on some of your homework so I can talk to him for a little while?" he smiled back at her gently as he ushered her out of the room.

As she was leaving the room I saw her lean in closer to Kenny and whisper something that I couldn't make out before she smiled and nearly skipped out of the room. As soon as she was gone I could see the expression on his face change immediately, his eyes growing sadder as his expression hardened a bit. Walking closer to me he was now standing above me, as I leaned away from him slightly closing my eyes so that I didn't need to look at him. The awkward tension in the air was palpable as the silence lingered far longer than it probably should have. After what seemed like forever I heard him clear his throat before he began to speak.

"Thanks. For taking care of my sister like that. How are ya feeling? You were pretty out of it. Hope ya don't mind the house, I didn't know where else to bring you." he finished darkly.

"I-It's fine Kenny t-thank you. Y-You saved me from C-Cartman. H-He would have hurt me something bad if you h-hadn't stepped in." I whispered nervously, my face beginning to grow red.

"Eh don't worry about it dude, I told ya I owed ya one. 'Sides I'm always looking for a reason to hit him anyway." He says absentmindedly. "If ya need anything just ask dude, anyone that that asshole hates that bad mustn't be that bad."

"T-Thank you. I-I'm sorry to be such trouble. I-I'll be on my way." I said as I try once again to stand back up, placing my hand on my side as I wince in pain one more time.

"Dude just stay down, think ya might have broken a rib or two. Do ya have to get home tonight? I'd say just stay here for the night and rest. I'd offer ya dinner but we don't have anything in terms of food around here." he finished irritably.

"N-No I-I don't have to be h-home tonight. T-Thank you Kenny. I-I can order some f-food or something i-it's the least I can do, m-maybe pizza?" I offer shyly looking up at him nervously, anxiously waiting to see how he takes my suggestion.

"We don't need handouts Butters, I'll figure out something. My parents aren't gunna be here tonight so it's easier." he growled at me, as I shrunk away from him afraid.

"I-I'm sorry K-Kenny I-I didn't m-mean it like that p-please. I oh hamburgers...i-it's just y-you've been so nice to me t-that I j-just wanted t-to help. Gosh I'm s-sorry." I stammered out as I began to rub my knuckles together.

Seeing how nervous I was, his face softened once again as he looked at me gently, a look of remorse on his features as he looked back at me. He sighed and sat down on the floor next to me, a sad smile on his features.

"It's fine Butters. I'm sorry it's just a touchy subject. I didn't mean to get that way. Pizza would be good. When I get some money I'll pay ya back dude." he said sheepishly.

After the pizza came me, Kenny and Karen all sat down to eat it. I didn't have very much, only a couple of slices, I gave them most of it. Between the two of them they managed to finish 2 large pizzas in no time at all. When we had finished cleaning up I helped Karen finish the rest of her homework before finally crawling onto the bare mattress that served as Kenny's bed. Seeing him pull a raggedy old blanket out from him rundown closet and bundle it up on the carpet I was hit with a pang of guilt. Oh hamburgers I had to do something, I couldn't just let him sleep down there all night after he had saved me.

"H-Hey Kenny w-why don't you sleep up h-here? W-We can just, just s-share the bed. But n-no funny business." I finish weakly as he climbs up in the bed next to me. Shivering slightly from the draft in his room as I turned away from him. I could feel him hesitate a bit as if he was going to say something.

"Hey Butters?" he asked softly.

"Y-Ya Kenny?" I asked nervously.

"Goodnight Butters. If ya need anything just wake me up k?" he said with a sigh.

"O-Oh alright. G-Goodnight" I say, a small smile on my lips as I fall into a well deserved sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Kenny's POV_**

Waking up, I could see the first rays of sunlight barely making their way through my window. Stretching out my sore muscles I felt one of my shoulders pop back into place as I turned around, coming face to face with the sleeping boy next to me. In the twilight his injuries didn't appear to be too bad, the bruising on his face would definitely be there for a while but at least most of the damage wasn't very easily seen. Sighing to myself I swung out of the bed, landing carefully on the floor in front of it. Bending down I picked up the hoodie that I had dropped on the floor the night before, putting it on along with a pair of jeans. Picking up the pack of cigarettes from the nightstand I lit one, shaking the ashes onto the floor. As I stood there smoking I could feel my eyes trailing over to blonde house guest that was still asleep on my bed. Ya know if it wasn't for the lack of dirt and grease covering him he probably wouldn't look too out of place here. As I blew out a puff of smoke I couldn't help but let my thoughts trail back to the happenings of the day before. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if I hadn't been there to stop Cartman from hurting him. How often did that happen? How have I never noticed that happen before now? I know that you can't hear me right now Butters but I can promise you that as long as I'm around nothing like that will ever happen again.

Seeing that he wasn't going to wake up anytime soon I decided to go check on Karen to make sure that she was doing alright. Peeking into her room from to door-less frame, I could see that she was still sound asleep in her bed. Sneaking in a bit farther I couldn't help but look at her, in her sleep she looked so peaceful that I almost cringed at the thought of her waking up to be faced with this hell we need to call life. Smiling a sad smile I reached into my wallet and pulled out the last of the money that I had in there. $5.00. All I had to my name was five fucking dollars. No matter how hard I try to look for a job I'll never fucking get one, nobody wants to hire a "low life, trailer trash thief" as they've taken to calling me. Let me just make it known now that I am no thief, a bit sketchy sure, but I have never in my life stolen anything. It's not like anyone would believe that anyways, it's almost like whenever somebody hears the name "McCormick" they automatically assume the worst about us all. Sighing in frustration I shove the bill into the pocket of her jeans, knowing that at least it's enough for her to get lunch for today.

Walking back into my room I grab the pack of cigarettes and the lighter off of the nightstand and light up another one before forcefully putting them in my pocket. As quietly as I can I open the drawer of the small table and take out the knife that I keep stashed there in case I might need it. Flipping the blade open I inspect it quickly to inspect it, before pushing it deep into the back pocket of my jeans. Closing the drawer again I sit down on the edge of the bed gingerly, just watching the clock, waiting until it was time to wake the others up for school. Damn my life has gotten even more hellish than it used to be. Back then sure my parents still drank all the time but at least we were all together as a family. Now my older brother Kevin is in prison for armed robbery and it's a cold day in hell when my parents come home at all. I know that they'll never admit it to anyone but my mom has started seeing somebody new. She all but forgot about the rest of us here in South Park, I think she was living with him up in Denver the last time I checked. The guy sends a decent check every month though, he must feel bad that we're here starving to death. When my dad doesn't get to the check before I do it's just enough to pay the bills for this house but that's about it. Ah yes my dad, holy fuck has he gotten worse. Ya see after my mother left he started to drink even more than he used to, I'm not just talking beer anymore either, I'm talking about hard liquor. Ever since he's been frequenting brothels all over Colorado, heard he got one of the bitches pregnant a few months ago. Looks like he's gonna have another child to neglect.

Having been shaken from my thoughts by a soft sort of whimper coming from my right, I look over and see Butters beginning to stir from his sleep. I watch transfixed as he moves around, turning onto his stomach and burying his face into my completely flat excuse for a pillow before whining again. Only a few seconds later he turns onto his side as his beautiful blue eyes begin to flutter open.

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 _ **Butters POV**_

"Good morning Sleeping Beauty, did ya sleep well?" I hear as the green eyed blonde sitting next to me in the bed ask, a smirk on his face.

For the first few seconds all I could feel was confusion, why was he in my room? That was when I noticed that the pillow I was laying on was completely flat and that the dirty mattress I was on top of was missing a sheet. Oh ya I forgot I had slept at Kenny's house last night after what had happened yesterday. Gosh I forgot that this was his room, I hope he doesn't mind me being in here. My brow knit together in confusion as I struggled to find anything that I could say to him.

"T-Thank you Kenny I s-slept just fine. Gee what time is it? I never did my homework last night! Gosh the teachers are going to be awfully sore at me when I show up without it." I say as I sit up in the bed, a sense of dread washing over me. "S-Say think I have time to do it right now?" I say hopefully.

"It's only 5, ya probably have like an hour before school starts. I dunno how much homework ya got but ya could probably get at least a little done." he says to me as he stands up from the bed. "Sorry there's nothing around here to eat. We don't have any electricity so if ya want the best shot at finishing it you're probably gunna have to go out to the big room, there's the most light out there. If you've gotta pee or anything you're probably gunna have to go outside, there's not really running water here either sorry." he says a bit sheepishly rubbing at the back of his neck.

"G-Gee that's quite alright Kenny! I'm happy to go out there thank you." I say as I stand up in the bed, wincing a bit in pain but it doesn't hurt anywhere near as bad as it did yesterday.

My breathing was still a bit shallow but it really wasn't that bad anymore honestly, I'd had a lot worse than this. Walking over to my backpack I struggled to pick it up onto my back, gasping in pain as it hit my back for the first time. Moving slowly out into the hallway it probably takes me at least a few minutes to make the incredibly short walk into the main room. The lighting wasn't much better out here but it wasn't the worst either, it was bright enough for me to be able to see what I was doing at least.

It only felt like a few minutes to me but apparently it was actually a little longer than an hour. As I was beginning to pack my things back up into my bag I looked up to see little Karen walking in with Kenny not too far behind her. Her hair had gotten a bit messed up in her sleep but it honestly still looked pretty good. When she saw me I could see her face light up a bit as she smiled happily if not a bit sleepily at me.

"Good morning mister Butters!" she said brightly.

"W-Well good morning to you too Karen." I said smiling warmly back at her. "I finished up my homework, when do you leave to get to school Kenny?" I asked turning my attention towards him.

"Well normally I go in late after I make sure that Karen gets to her school safe, but I guess today I'm gunna have to make an exception to that to getcha to school on time. Karen here is all ready to go so she'll just have to come for the walk with us." he finished before heading towards the front door. When he opened it I could hear the creaking of the door on its hinges as it swung inwards.


End file.
